The future of headship may not be a choice between CEO and “vicar of the parish”.
The most effective school leaders are increasingly expected to be both strategic organisational leaders and visible guardians of culture, community and values.
Drawing on our research into the changing nature of Headship ‘20% More – The Art of Headship 2026’, Head of UK Appointments Richard Backhouse reflects on what this means for governors and why defining the role may now be just as important as appointing the right person.
In our conversations with 56 independent school headteachers this summer, one theme in particular struck a chord. Boards are rightly asking heads to provide stronger strategic, financial and organisational leadership; at the same time, parents, staff and pupils still look to the head as the visible guardian of the school’s culture and ethos. Neither expectation is unreasonable: in fact, both matter a great deal if an independent school is to thrive.
A school has to be a resilient enterprise, with finances that are sustainable over time, but it also has to be a human community in which staff, parents and pupils feel that they belong. That is why the familiar balance between chief executive and “vicar-of-the-parish” (as one leading head put it) is helpful, but only up to a point. The CEO language captures the growing need for financial fluency, commercial awareness, legal confidence and strategic discipline. The “vicar-of-the-parish” language captures something equally important: visibility, moral presence, pastoral attentiveness and benevolence – the daily work of sustaining trust.
Our interviews didn’t suggest one emergent model of headship which will suit every school. What they do suggest is that role design is becoming as important as candidate selection. The most forward-looking governors and heads aren’t treating these as rival job descriptions. They are asking which parts of each are essential to their school, which the head must personally carry, and which can be carried by others around the leadership table.
This hybrid model can’t be carried by heroic hyperactivity. It requires clearer delegation, stronger executive support, better-defined governance boundaries, protected time for the relationships only the head can nurture, and an honest conversation about what no longer needs to sit personally with the head. The question for governors is not whether they want a CEO or a “vicar”; it is what kind of school they are trying to sustain, and what kind of headship will make that possible.
This matters in headship recruitment because making an appointment is no longer only about finding an exceptional individual. It is also about helping a board of governors test whether the role it has defined is one that an exceptional individual can realistically, confidently and sustainably do.